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25,794 Nigerians Killed In Buhari’s First Term -Report …As Gunmen Kill 13 In Taraba, Three In Kaduna …Soldier, Three Others Killed In Plateau …UN, Taraba Women Condemn, Protest Killings

No fewer than 25, 794 Nigerians may have died in violent crises in the first four years of President Muhammadu Buhari.
The figure was released by the Nigeria Security Tracker, a project run by the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonprofit think tank specialising in United States foreign policy and international affairs.
The number represents those killed by different insurgent groups and Boko Haram in northern Nigeria, herdsmen, and people who died due to extra-judicial activities of the military.
From June 2015 to May 2019, when the President had his first tenure, our correspondent observed that Borno suffered the highest casualties recording 9,303 deaths. The state was followed by Zamfara (1,963) and Adamawa (1,529).
Others captured in the map are Kaduna (1,488), Plateau (771), Taraba (649), Benue (1,642), Niger (252) Rivers (730), Cross River (467), Ogun (301), among others.
Graphical illustration revealed that the highest casualties were recorded in July 2015 (1,299) and January 2019 (1,077).
Within the four years’ timeline, members of the Boko Haram sect were responsible for 5,598 deaths, while sectarian violence, including the herdsmen-farmers crisis, led to 4,917 deaths.
State actors alone, including the military, were said to have killed 4,068 people.
During the tenure of former President Goodluck Jonathan (June 2011 to May 2015), a total of 34,884 people were reportedly killed across the country.
The highest record of casualties was in March 2014, when 3,456 Nigerians were killed.
Boko Haram and the military were jointly responsible for 12,765 deaths.
The Council on Foreign Relations, while explaining the methodology behind the data, said it relied on media reports.
The report said, “The Nigeria Security Tracker tracks violence that is both causal and symptomatic of Nigeria’s political instability and citizen alienation. The data are based on weekly surveys of Nigerian and international media.
“The data start with May 29, 2011, the date of Goodluck Jonathan’s inauguration as president. It was an event that highlighted the increasing bifurcation of the country on regional and religious lines. The NST is updated weekly.
“Relying on press reports of violence presents methodological limitations. There is a dearth of accurate reporting across certain regions, death tolls are imprecise, and accounts of incidents vary. There is the potential for political manipulation of media. Given these limitations, the NST makes every effort to collect information from multiple sources. Nevertheless, NST statistics should be viewed as indicative rather than definitive.”
Also, four people including a soldier were confirmed dead yesterday following a fresh attack in Riyom Council Area of Plateau State by gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen.
Our correspondent gathered yesterday that the attack on the remote Kagboro community took place around 12 pm on Monday and lasted for several hours which accounted for the high level of destruction in the community.
Villagers said that over 300 herdsmen invaded the village, shooting indiscriminately and burning houses including a government-owned clinic in the community after they overpowered men of the vigilante group who tried to resist them.
Meanwhile, at least, 13 people are said to have been killed and houses burnt in two separate attacks in Ardo Kola and Donga local government areas of Taraba State.
Our correspondent gathered that six people were killed in Janibanibu in Ardo Kola LGA near Jalingo when armed herdsmen invaded the village at about 6pm on Monday while seven were killed in an ambush at the border between Wukari and Donga LGAs.
The Parish Priest of St. John the Baptist Pastoral Area, Janibanibu, Rev. Fr. Cyriacus Kamai, told newsmen that seven people were killed in the village by suspected Fulani herdsmen.
“I am in Janibanibu village now, we have recovered six bodies, and we are making efforts to give them mass burial with the support of the soldiers who are with us in the village.
It would be recalled that Kona women, yesterday, staged a massive protest against the continued attacks on their communities and killings of their people by armed herdsmen.
The women took the protest walk from Kona village to Jalingo, the city centre.
Similarly, suspected Boko Haram jihadists have overrun a military base and looted a nearby town in Borno State, security sources and residents said, yesterday, the latest of such attack in the restive region.
The raids came a day after 30 people were killed last Sunday in a triple suicide bombing in the region that also bore the hallmarks of Boko Haram.
Boko Haram’s decade-long campaign of violence has killed 27,000 people and displaced about two million in Nigeria.
Late last Monday assailants, arriving on nine armoured trucks, stormed into the military base outside Gajiram village, 80 kilometres (50 miles) north of the Borno State capital, Maiduguri.
They were suspected to be from IS-affiliated Boko Haram faction known as the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
“They dislodged troops from the base after a fight,” a security source said.
“We don’t know the extent of damage and looting in the base. An assessment is being carried out”.
It was not immediately clear if there were any casualties.
Residents said the Islamists drove into the town after sacking the base and looted shops, shooting into the air.
Their presence forced residents to flee into the bush while others shut themselves in their homes.
“The gunmen drove into the town around 6pm (1700GMT) after overpowering soldiers in the base,” Gajiram resident Mele Butari said.
“They stayed for almost five hours. They broke into the shops and looted food supplies and provisions,” he said.
“They didn’t hurt anyone and they made no attempt to attack people who fled into the bush or hid indoors”.
Soldiers were seen returning to the town from the bush, yesterday morning.
Traffic on the main road through Gajiram was suspended as soldiers assessed the damage in the base, said residents who returned to the town.
Gajiram lies on the highway linking Maiduguri and the garrison town of Monguno, 55 kilometres away.
Gajiram and the nearby base have been repeatedly attacked by the insurgents.
In June, last year, ISWAP raided the same base, killing nine soldiers.
ISWAP has targeted dozens of military bases since last year, killing scores of soldiers.
Last week, several troops were killed in an ISWAP attack on a remote base in Kareto village, near the border with Niger, according to military sources.
Last Sunday’s suicide bombings occurred in Konduga, 38 kilometres from Maiduguri.
The attacks appeared to be the work of a Boko Haram faction loyal to long-time leader, Abubakar Shekau.
Boko Haram violence has spilled over into neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroon, prompting formation of a regional military coalition to defeat the jihadist group.
Also, Reverend Father Isaac Agabi, who was abducted last Sunday by gunmen suspected to be herdsmen, has regained his freedom.
Agabi, who is the priest in charge of Holy Name Catholic Church, Ikpeshi, in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area of Edo State, was kidnapped along Auchi-Igarra road at about 5.00 pm, while on his way back to the parish.
It was gathered that he ran away from his abductors in the early hours of yesterday.
The Director of Communication, Catholic Diocese of Auchi-Igarra, Fr. Peter Egielewa, confirmed Agabi’s escape to newsmen in Benin.
Egielewa also confirmed that no ransom was paid to secure the release of the victim from his abductors.
He disclosed that Agabi escaped from the kidnappers when they slept off in the night.
“No ransom was paid. He actually escaped in the night when the kidnappers were asleep. He came out of the bush and was able to come home, no ransom was paid”, said.
The Edo Police spokesman, DSP Chidi Nwabuzor, could not be reached for comment, as calls made to his mobile phone were not answered.
However, leaders of the kidnappers who abducted Agabi have been allegedly nabbed by youths of Ikpeshi, in Akoko-Edo.
Similarly, six persons were said to have been killed in an attack launched by suspected herdsmen Monday night on Janibanibu community under Ardo Kola local government area in Taraba state.
This came as hundreds of Kona women yesterday took to the streets to draw attention to the continuous killings of their husbands and children.
The aggrieved women who were dressed in black to mourn the deceased decried the encroachment of their ancestral homes by armed marauders.
They also demanded the release of their youths who they claimed were arrested by security operatives. The procession which started from Kona terminated at Nukkai, a suburb of Jalingo.
However, our correspondent observed that KasuwanBera, a popular market in the metropolis was a shadow of itself, as most traders who live in the sacked villages have deserted it.
Security operatives were also seen around ATC, KasuwanBera among others maintaining law and order. The assault which raised tension and led to the imposition of 14 hours curfew late Monday night by the state government.
News
Tinubu Orders Security Chiefs To Restore Peace In Plateau, Benue, Borno

President Bola Tinubu has ordered a security outreach to the hotbeds of recent killings in Plateau, Benue and Borno States, to restore peace to areas wracked by mass killings and bomb attacks.
National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, disclosed this to State House correspondents after a four-hour security briefing with the President at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja on Wednesday.
“We listened and we took instructions from him. We got new directives…to go meet with the political authorities there,” Ribadu told reporters, adding that Tinubu directed them to engage state-level authorities in the worst-hit regions.
Director-General, National Intelligence Agency, Mohammed Mohammed; Chief Defence Intelligence of the Nigerian Army, Gen. Emmanuel Undianeye; Director-General, Department of State Services, Oluwatosin Ajayi and Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, appeared for the briefing.
The Tide’s source reports that in Plateau State, inter-communal violence between predominantly Christian farmers and nomadic herders spiralled into gory slaughter when gunmen stormed Zikke village in Bassa Local Government early on April 14, killing at least 51 people and razing homes in a single night.
In Benue, at least 56 people were killed in Logo and Gbagir after twin assaults blamed on armed herders.
Meanwhile, in Borno State, eight passengers perished and scores were injured when an improvised explosive device ripped through a bus on the Damboa–Maiduguri highway on April 12.
Ribadu explained that after an extensive briefing, intelligence chiefs received fresh instructions to restore peace, security and stability across Nigeria.
“In particular, Tinubu had ordered immediate outreach to the political authorities in Plateau, Benue and Borno States, and the defence team had gone round those States to carry out his directives and report back.
“We gave him an update on what has been the case and what is going on, and even when he was out there, before coming back, he was constantly in touch. He was giving directives. He was following developments, and we, in charge of the security, got the opportunity today to come and brief him properly for hours. And it was exhaustive.
“We listened and we took instructions from him. We got new directives. The fact is, Mr. President is insisting and working so hard to ensure that we have peace, security and stability in our country. We gave him an update on what is going on, and we also assured him that work is ongoing and continues.
“We also carried out his instructions. We went round, the chiefs were all out where we had these incidents of insecurity in Plateau State, Benue State, even Borno, these particular three states, and we gave him feedback, because he directed us to go meet with the political authorities there,” the NSA explained.
Ribadu described Tinubu as “worried and concerned,” and said he directed that all security arms be deployed around the clock.
The government, he added, believes these steps have already produced measurable improvements, even if the situation is not yet 100 per cent safe and secure.
“He’s so worried and concerned, he insisted that enough is enough, and we are working and to ensure that we restore peace and security and all of us are there. The armed forces are there, the Civil Police, intelligence communities, they are there.
“They are working there 24 hours, and we feel that we have done enough to believe that we are on the right course, and we’ll be able to be on top of things,” Ribadu stated.
The NSA emphasised that combating insecurity was not solely a Federal Government responsibility.
He stated, “The issue of insecurity often is not just for the government. It involves the subunits. They are the ones who are directly with the people, especially if some of the challenges are more or less bordering on community problems.
“Not entirely everything is that, but of course it also plays a significant role. You need to work with the communities, the local governments, and the governors, especially the governors.
“The President will continue to direct that. We should be doing that, and that’s what we are able to. We are very happy and very satisfied with the instructions and directives given by Mr. President this evening.”
In Borno State, the NSA noted that while violence had surged in recent months, the insurgents refused to accept defeat.
He warned that most recent casualties there resulted from improvised explosive devices—”cowardly” IED attacks targeting civilians—and from opportunistic raids that follow any lull in fighting.
“We are getting the cooperation of the leadership at the state level, and everybody. It’s not 100 per cent…but we are going there.
“When you are having peace and you are beginning to get used to it, if one bad incident happens, you forget the periods that you enjoyed peacefully,” he added.
He paid tribute to the “many who do not sleep, who walk throughout, who do not go for any break or holiday”—the soldiers, police and intelligence officers whose sacrifices have created the fragile calm Nigerians now experience.
“They will continue to be there,” he said, adding, “Things have changed in this country…we are on the right track and we will not relent. We will not sit down; we will not stop until we are able to achieve results.”
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FG Laments Low Patronage Of Made-In-Nigeria Products

A Federal Government agency – the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, has decried the low patronage of Nigerian-made products by Nigerians.
The agency identified some challenges leading to the low patronage of the local products as affordability and public perception, among others.
Speaking during a stakeholders meeting organised by the agency in Akure, Ondo State capital, yesterday, the Deputy Director of Engineering at NASENI, Mr Joseph Alasoluyi, said Nigerians preferred buying foreign goods compared to local goods.
Alasoluyi, however disclosed that the agency had trained over 50 participants in the production of hand-made products, in a bid to ensure Nigeria-made products are patronised.
He explained that NASENI was set up to promote science, technology, and engineering as a foundation for Nigeria’s development and currently operates 12 institutes nationwide to achieve its objectives.
According to him, the aim of President Bola Tinubu, who is also the overall chairman of NASENI, was to ensure high production and patronage of “our local products thereby creating employment opportunities for many.”
He said, “The idea of this programme is to interface to ensure we produce products using our indigenous technology. This is what NASENI is out for, to ensure that homegrown technologies are encouraged.
“We are out there to ensure we integrate efforts to ensure that local technology is used to develop products within the resources we have.
“ The NASENI’s ‘3 Cs’ – Creation, Collaboration, and Commercialisation – that define NASENI’s strategic mandate: Creating innovations through research, Collaborating with partners to develop and refine products, and Commercialising these solutions to benefit the economy.
“Our achievements include the development of solar irrigation systems, CNG conversion centres, building machines capable of producing up to 1,000 blocks per hour, 10-inch tablets, locally made laptops, and electric tricycles (Keke Napep) set for market launch.”
In his remarks, the Deputy Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Prof. Samuel Oluyamo, blamed the Federal Government for not properly funding research in the varsities, also noting that many research outputs were left halfway due to lack of funding and weak linkages between research institutions and industry.
Oluyamo also queried the Federal Government’s commitment to funding research and development, saying many academic innovations remained on the shelve due to a lack of support for commercialisation and poor infrastructure.
“Until we upscale research into mass production, technological growth will remain elusive. The government is not funding research in the universities enough. Thank God for TETfund that is trying in this regime. The major interest in beefing up research in universities and research institutions is really not there,” he said.
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Nigeria Seeks Return To JP Morgan Bond Index
The Director-General of the Debt Management Office, Patience Oniha, has said that Nigeria is in advanced discussions with JP Morgan to re-enter the Government Bond Index and renew investors’ confidence.
Oniha disclosed this on Wednesday at a Nigerian Investors’ Forum on the sidelines of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C.
The DMO boss explained that Nigeria has enjoyed favourable credit assessment among rating agencies in recent times on the back of the sweeping reforms initiated by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Fitch Ratings recently upgraded the Long-Term Issuer Default Ratings of seven Nigerian banks and two bank holding companies to ‘B’ from ‘B-‘, noting that the outlooks are Stable.
The affected issuers are Access Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Limited, Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc, First HoldCo Plc, First Bank of Nigeria Ltd, Fidelity Bank Plc and Bank of Industry Limited.
The upgrades of the Long-Term IDRs of the banks followed the recent sovereign upgrade and reflect Fitch’s view that Nigeria’s sovereign credit profile has become less of a constraint on the issuers’ standalone creditworthiness, the rating agency said.
Fitch also upgraded Nigeria’s Long-Term IDRs to ‘B’ from ‘B-‘ on 11 April, a decision that reflected increased confidence in the government’s broad commitment to policy reforms implemented since its move to orthodox economic policies in June 2023, including exchange rate liberalisation, monetary policy tightening and steps to end deficit monetisation and remove fuel subsidies.
“These have improved policy coherence and credibility and reduced economic distortions and near-term risks to macroeconomic stability, enhancing resilience in the context of persistent domestic challenges and heightened external risks,” Fitch said.
Nigeria was removed from the JP Morgan index in 2015 ostensibly due to its deviation from orthodox monetary policies and influence of capital control in its management of foreign exchange.
Principally due to reduction in oil revenues at the time, Nigeria introduced currency restrictions to defend the naira after it failed to halt a dangerous slide with burning of dollar reserves. The bank had earlier warned Nigeria to restore liquidity to its currency market in a way that allowed foreign investors tracking the index to conduct transactions with minimal hurdles.
“Foreign investors who track the GBI-EM series continue to face challenges and uncertainty while transacting in the naira due to the lack of a fully functional two-way FX market and limited transparency,” the bank said in a 2015 note.
Nigeria was listed in JP Morgan’s emerging government bond index in October 2012, after the Central Bank removed a requirement that foreign investors hold government bonds for a minimum of one year before exiting.
The JP Morgan Government Bond Index reflects investor confidence and opens doors to billions of investment flows, making Nigeria’s proposed re-entry a positive signal to the market and investors.
Oniha explained that talks with JP Morgan were ongoing and had gained momentum in recent times due to the stability created by the FX market reforms.
“With all the reforms that have taken place, particularly around FX, we have started engaging JP Morgan again to get back into the index. We think we are eligible now,” the DMO DG said.
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